A fun girls night out filled with yoga and edutainment! Yoga is for all levels, we’ll have a few taste treats, and learn something new to keep our bodies in optimal health! Bring your sister, your girlfriends, bring all the women in your life! Cost is 35.00 July 29th 7-9:30pm Ayurveda Ayurveda, a sister science to Yoga, is the oldest continuously practiced health care system in the world. This science teaches that each of us has a fundamental constitution. When our constitution is in balance, we experience optimal health in body and mind; when out of balance, we experience a range of physical symptoms and mental conditions that can eventually manifest as dis-ease and/or discomfort. The restoration of a natural state of balance focuses on diet, daily routines, the use of herbs, and natural cleansing protocols. During this discussion, you will become more familiar with Ayurveda and how it applies to living in a balanced state of health and happiness. Topics coming up: Create a Non-Toxi

Bart was at Walk a Mile in Her Shoes this morning. While it is hard to give up my wonderful husband on a Sunday morning, I am proud and supportive of the work he does. Today, 500 people were at the Mall of America working to end violence against women. He was one of them.

Last week Judith Lasater came to Minneapolis and I was one of the 57 yogis who spent afternoons getting cozy with her. Judith taught us how to get comfortable and to share that understanding with our students. For me, this has meant much cozier bedtimes for my 3-year-old (and, much more restful sleeping as well…)

If you have ever felt stress, check out Judith’s approach to yoga. It will help you relax and get comfortable. Yumm

I spent a little time trying to figure out the best sunscreen for my fair-skinned toddler. Basically, you need to slather it on – like if your family was at the beach all day an entire 8 oz bottle would be empty if we used it as it is tested. And reapply liberally at least every 2 hours. We bought Bennett 3 UV protection shirts for this summer.

Realistic View: find a relatively all natural sunscreen. Protect from UVA and UVB rays. No Parabans. We bought Caribbean Solutions – natural/biodegradable lotation. It is a botanical /mineral blend. Of course I just read that I’m supposed to reapply every 45 MINUTES! Check this out,\I’ve used most of these brands throughout the years: http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/natural-sunscreens-460608

As devoted as I am to my yoga practice, I try not to talk (or write) about it all the time, mostly because I’m not sure anyone’s all that interested in hearing about my yogic journey – and because I don’t want to be one of those people who insists that everyone else try yoga. If you’re meant to discover it, I believe you will. (And I sincerely hope you do.)

But as I sat on my mat in meditation today, it occurred to me that part of what I value most about yoga is my fellow yogis. They’re a varied bunch, men and women who have consistently opened my eyes to new ways of thinking and exposed me to views I might never have considered.

So I was taken aback by this itemin a blog on the Yoga Journal Web site:

Hip-hop artist, clothing designer, and yoga practitioner Russell Simmons says President Obama is coming from a yogic mind set, especially when it comes to his policies. Instead of being fearful, he listens and reaches out to others, Simmons said. “He’s an inspiration to the whole yoga community,” Simmons told the politico.comPolitico podcast, which you can listen to at Politico.com. “I’m sure they voted 90 percent for him.”

Simmons’s comment occurred near the end of a segment in which the interviewer peppered Simmons with a series of quick questions. Simmons noted that in many respects Obama seems a very yogic president. Then, off-handedly, he made his comment about yogis voting.

Simmons seems like a reasonable, well-meaning man. But if you take him to mean that more than 90 percent of yoga practitioners probably voted for Obama, well, I have issues with that.

It’s dangerous — and, I might add, not very yogic — to assume that the yoga community is so homogeneous that 9 out of 10 of its members voted for the same presidential candidate. Simmons’s comment, casual as it may have been, suggests a certain narrow-mindedness and lack of equanimity that I hope is not really characteristic of him — or of the broader yoga community.

What’s your view? Is yoga primarily the province of one bloc of voters?